The crowfunding campaign has started!

The crowfunding for the recording of the masterpiece by Francesco Gasparini IL BAJAZET has begun.

Next July Auser Musici and Opera Barga will co-produce the opera IL BAJAZET, the masterpiece by Francesco Gasparini, conducted by Auser Musici’s leader, Carlo Ipata, and directed by Paola Rota. The opera, a great success when first produced, has never been heard or seen in modern times.

In 1719 Gasparini wrote his second version of his earlier opera Tamerlano (1711), with the title IL BAJAZET, and it is this score we will be using for our July production. The cast of the time included Antonio Bernacchi, Faustina Bordoni, Diana Vico and the famous baritenorFrancesco Borosini, singer of the title role, who once again displayed is incredible vocal range spanning more than two octaves, from bottom G to top A.

Borosini was later called to London to sing the same role in Handel’s Tamerlano, and he was partly responsible for the many borrowings Handel’s work owed to Gasparini's IL BAJAZET. These are widely acknowledged and quite obvious in Bajazet’s first aria Forte e lieto a morte andrei and thecelebrated recitativo accompagnato of Bajazet’s death scene. 

The 8 characters, Bajazet, Tamerlano, Asteria, Irene, Andronico, Clearco, Leone and Zaida sing 34 da capo arias, some with the obbligato accompaniment of the violin, cello, flute and oboe, and a terzetto. The orchestra is scored for 9 strings, two oboes (recorder), 2 horns, 1 bassoon and continuo (16 musicians for this production).

The whole project will take three weeks, two of them for the staging of the Opera (with two concerts, 10th and 11th July) and one for the recording.

The cost of the recording section is estimated at around 18.000 € including the sound engineering, the director of recording, the editing, the recording fees plus accommodation for the musicians, singers, director, chief operating officer and technicians (28 people). Most of this budget (including cachets for artists) we have managed to include in the production costs (thanks also to the contribution of Fondazione Pisa), but we still need a further 5.000 € to make ends meet (just the costs for sound engineering and sound designer, for the hiring of sound mixer, microphones, booms, cables and other materials, and for the later editing)

BY SUPPORTING THIS CROWDFUNDING CAMPAIGN YOU WILL HELP US MAKE THIS RECORDING POSSIBLE

THE FIRST EVER RECORDING OF AN OPERA BY FRANCESCO GASPARINI

The cast was chosen during the course of three days of audition which took place in February in Pisa. It includes some experienced and some very promising baroque singers of the new generation whom we are proud to present in this production.

AS A REWARD FOR YOUR SUPPORT WE HAVE COME UP WITH A FEW BONUS ITEMS YOU MAY VIEW AND SELECT FROM THE COLUMN ON THE RIGHT

We thank our sponsors who have made some of these prizes possible